Just Sayin': Where is the outrage over truly traumatic events?

Of all the columns I have ever written, this one I never saw coming. Will Smith slapped Chris Rock during the recent Oscars and the world has lost their mind.

I myself made a little Facebook post and then a little joke and then moved on; the same as I thought the rest of the world would do.

Boy was I wrong.

I didn’t watch the oscars, as I bet most of you didn’t. But when I heard about the controversy, I went back and watched it. I watched it several times, including the verbal altercation part. Then I went on about my day.

Yet today as I scrolled through social media before bed, I saw three - not one, not two, but three - articles from the New York Times about this. I am sure there was more, but this is what I saw.

One of the largest papers in the world and they felt that “the slap” deserved this much attention.

One individual was quoted as being “traumatized’” by witnessing it! Can you imagine being traumatized by witnessing one grown man open-handed slap another? I sure can’t.

He didn’t go on stage and shoot him, or stab him, or beat him half to death. Although I am not condoning violence or saying it was right to do at the moment, he just open-handed slapped another person and the other person is okay.

Let’s be serious. We all know that Will Smith has had a rough go of it the last year or so. We all know his wife admitted her infidelity and he was devastated. We saw the memes of him crying, making fun of him for it and being less of a man. Yet he and his wife have chosen to work it out. None of my business.

We also know his wife suffers from a medical condition that causes her hair to fall out, so she shaves it. She has been very vocal on that.

Now Chris Rock decides to make a joke about it. Making fun of any medical condition is in poor taste, if you ask me, yet that is a comedian’s way. We shall agree to disagree; there are plenty of things in this world to laugh at - a beautiful woman loosing her hair doesn’t have to be one.

Moving on … the joke was made, the husband got mad, and he went on to slap the man who made the joke. Again, an open-handed slap. I have been hit harder.

Was it the best choice to make? No. Was it wrong? Yes. Let us also consider, however, although rich and famous, he is human. He has feelings, and emotions, and bad days. The man lost it and had a bad day.

Chris Rock declined to press charges, both individuals admitted to making poor choices and apologized to the other and those attending. To me that is a perfect example of how something can go wrong, but being an adult and admitting to your mistakes and working things out are possible. It is a good thing, right?

Apparently not, because people “are traumatized.”

Traumatized over an open-handed slap. One that hurt pride more than body. This I truly don’t understand.

We as a nation see Black Americans being killed during traffic stops, while out jogging by other citizens chasing them, and a million other acts of violence against them over the years. Yet are we not traumatized?

We have seen many acts of violence against the LGBTQ community to the point of their deaths and this has been going on for quite some time too! Are we not traumatized?

We see our young children taking their lives over senseless bullying, to which they find no escape with today’s access to phones and social media. Are we not traumatized?

We watch one young woman after another lose her life to a jealous controlling man who ultimately kills her while on vacation. Are we not traumatized?

We hear every day of horrific child abuse cases that leave our youngest and most innocent citizens dead at the hands of those who should love them!! Are we not traumatized??

No, we are not traumatized; we are desensitized! We are desensitized to the everyday horrific acts of violence that go on in this world day in and day out. We become numb. We lose our ability to feel, to empathize, to humanize these victims. We have become so used to it - the senseless killings, the mass and school shootings, the inner city violence - to the point it means nothing.

Yet we lose our minds over one rich man open-handed slapping another. Nobody died. They apologized and still it requires one of the largest papers in our nation to write three articles??? Are you seriously telling me we don’t have bigger things to worry about? More important things than a slap?

Don’t tell me it was the Oscars!! I don’t care if it was during the inauguration; when an adult male slaps another adult male with an open hand, over a simple argument, I don’t care. I’ll save my concern for more important things.

We have 157 dead in Mineral County alone from COVID and the world couldn’t be bothered to wear a mask! Seriously, what are we prioritizing in life?

Right now all I hear is Chris Rock and Will Smith. Just those two names. You want a name? I have some names for you… Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, Philando Castile, Matthew Shepard, Drake Hardman, Gabby Petitos, Adrian Jones, Max Schollenberger, and Emmaleigh Barringer,

Let us speak those names, let us focus on those individuals who lost their lives for reasons that should never be. Where is the outrage, where is the yelling about horrific violent acts, where are those who are traumatized?

Because for the life of me I can’t understand how these things happen and we’re writing three articles on an open-handed slap that never left another severely injured or dead.

While you all were so worried and busy being “traumatized” over that little slap, let me tell you what else was going on in the world … four people were killed after a car crashed into a homeless encampment; an Arkansas shooting at a car show killed one and left 24 wounded, including children; a Chicago police officer won’t be charged with shooting 13 year-old Adam Toledo; a man was arrested after punching an Asian women 125 times (punching, not slapping); a 96-year-old woman in Hagerstown, Maryland, was brutally beaten in the face and choked during a robbery by two men and a woman. Oh we do realize that people are still dying in the Ukraine and thousands of refugees are homeless, right?

But hey, who cares, because Will Smith slapped Chris Rock!

Seriously people, our morals are skewed, our priorities are horrible, and our values our gone. We’re desensitized to truly horrific acts of violence that happens everyday, and we make a big deal out of an open handed slap like it is the end of the world - screaming for accountability and consequences.

The world simply has gone to hell, and nobody cares.

I don’t care that Will Smith slapped Chris Rock. And if you think that is more important than the names I just gave you (yeah, go look up those horrific acts of violence!), well then I won’t care if someone slaps you either.

Just saying….

This article originally appeared on Mineral Daily News-Tribune: Just Sayin': Where is the outrage over truly traumatic events?